Elizabeth
Gramercy Pictures (I) | Release Date: November 6, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
75
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
25
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Mr. ShowbizKevin Maynard
This historical epic about the "virgin queen" of England's early life moves with the crackling urgency of a contemporary political thriller.
90
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The fabulous Elizabeth reinvents English Tudor history as gangster movie. Read full review
90
VarietyDavid Rooney
Superior historical soap opera that shrewdly sidesteps all the cliches of British costume drama with its bold, often modern approach. Read full review
90
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Where Elizabeth really triumphs over its dusty source material is in transforming all this boring history into a real, rip-roaring adventure tale. Read full review
90
Film.comPeter Brunette
What's best about the film is not the hot romance, but the coldness that lies at its heart.
88
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
A fascinating whirl of politics and palace intrigue. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The texture of the film is enough to recommend it, even apart from the story. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
This is a sensual, psychologically modern costume drama influenced by both "The Godfather" and gals' guides to empowerment. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesJack Matthews
Period movies inevitably reflect more about the period in which they're made than the period of their subject, and rarely has that been more evident -- or more distracting -- than it is with Elizabeth. Read full review
80
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Elizabeth's most triumphant aspect is Blanchett's transformation from saucy, spirited toe-tapper to iconic Virgin Queen. Read full review
80
SlateDavid Edelstein
The movie's approach makes for juicy melodrama. Read full review
80
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
This Elizabeth is presented as a glamorously stressed-out modern woman who must cope with a super-intense case of having it all. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
Bollywood meets The Godfather. Read full review
80
TimeRichard Schickel
This darkly sumptuous, hypnotically complex movie ought to have many constituencies. Read full review
80
SalonLaura Miller
A handsome, diverting coming-of-intrigue story studded with meaty performances. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleRussell Smith
Despite the florid trailers' emphasis on bodice-ripping romantic imagery, Elizabeth is above all a political thriller. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
Bad history it may be, but Elizabeth is a movie that makes you want more, as it plays to the myth of history's great actress-monarch, a character who puts today's tinselly political heros and heroines (royal and not), to shame. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
It's a rousing adventure that keeps the audience involved for the entirety of the two hour running time while opening a window into the culture that gave birth to Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser, Francis Bacon, and William Shakespeare. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Elizabeth works in a number of ways. It's a feminist film. It's also a kind of spy thriller and a superior historical drama. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Acted and directed with great energy and imagination. Read full review
75
San Francisco ExaminerWalter Addiego
History rendered with enough brains and imagination to more than make up for its few stumbles. Read full review
70
New Times (L.A.)Jean Oppenheimer
Although frustratingly confusing -- often the viewer can't be sure who is on which side or why -- the film brims with physical grandeur, exquisite costumes, and a captivating performance by Blanchett. Read full review
70
NewsweekJeff Giles
Kapur can't decide if he's making an art movie or a melodrama, an opera or a soap opera. Read full review
70
Rolling StonePeter Travers
The film belongs to Blanchett -- this hellcat Virgin Queen is something to see. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
The movie -- directed in such a frenziedly self-conscious style you often wonder whether the camera will topple over on his actors. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
Whether the story's bald ironies are historical cliches or just dramatic ones, they convey only platitudes about gender, sexuality, and power. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
But much of it, like its subject, is so cryptic, distractingly stylish, and impenetrably posed that it's rough going most of the way. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineSandra Contreras
The conspicuous lack of emotional resonance makes this film "Queen Margot's" poor cold English cousin. Read full review
50
USA TodayMike Clark
A notably undynamic treatment of Protestant Elizabeth I's ascension to the British throne. Read full review
30
Film ThreatRon Wells
All of the nutty editing and the loud score just grated on my nerves and failed the story. Read full review
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